Splurge or Steal? – ColourPop vs Artist Couture Loose Highlighters

I haven’t been this excited for a blog post in a while! I recently received a Sephora gift card as a Valentine’s Day gift (big thanks to my boyfriend), so I decided to purchase my first ever loose highlighter. I’ve been wanting an Artist Couture highlighter for a while now, and since I don’t have a local Sephora I looked online for swatches. I almost went with their classic Illuminati, but I don’t need another champaign highlighter. I decided to purchase Double Take, which is peachy gold. So the next day I get an email about ColourPop’s sale on their new Luster Dust. I obviously could not resist. I finally received both and had to share my thoughts!

ColourPop:

These are normally priced at $7 a pot, but I bought these for $5 each when they were on sale. What a steal! ColourPop isn’t always the fastest when it comes to packaging and shipping, but you can’t complain about their low prices. These highlighters are 3.0 oz, but you can buy 4 for the price of one Artist Couture highlighters.

I ended up buying 3 shades:

Hit Rewind is rose gold highlighter with gold glitter.

Gnomie is a soft champagne with silver glitter. This one is my favorite because its soft, subtle but buildable!

Aura Voir is more of a gold with a hint of peach.

Artist Couture:

This one was harder to capture on camera. It chromatic, and looks amazing when it catches the light at the right angle. This one is not glittery like the ColourPop highlighters, so this one is more of a natural look. It is pretty pigmented, so you can still have a blinding highlight if you build it. This one feels finer on the skin.

Since these highlighters are $27, I only purchased one.

Double Take is chromatic peachy gold.

Splurge or Steal?

As a makeup addict/enthusiast, I don’t regret buying either. I will honestly buy more of both brands in the future because I loved them both. That being said, it is totally up to you if you decide to splurge. The ColourPop Luster Dusts are definitely glittery side, and the Artist Couture Diamond Glow Powder is more of an iridescent highlighter. They’re both smooth, blendable, and highly pigmented.

So if you’re looking for a cheap but blinding highlighter, ColourPop is a great dupe and definitely a steal!

Have you tried these loose highlighters yet? Let me know if you have any other splurge or steal ideas you’d like to see!